Our Only Hope
by xdlol1505
Summary: This happens after the season 5 finale, Stefan decides to start over when Hope appears in his life. He and his best friend Caroline need to provide a loving home for her and to protect her. On their way will they find love? Will Hope be taken away from them? Read and find out.
1. Chapter 1

_This happens after season 5 finale._

**Stefan POV**

I have been searching for months, trying to bring Damon back going from coven to coven searching for a witch that might bring Damon and Bonnie back or at least might know something.

Nothing.

I knew I had to move on, start over. And even if I wanted to, I couldn't go back to Mystic Falls and face all of my friends defeated. Especially Elena, she still has hope that Damon will come back to her, she loves him that much.

I decided to stay in Perth, a small town where I wouldn't bring to much attention to myself. I bought a small house on the outskirts of town and got a job at the nearby garage as a mechanic. The pay was more than enough for me and it was near the woods where I could hunt for blood.

Every day for a month after I came back from work my phone would be ringing with a name reading _Caroline _or _Alaric. _I would never pick up; if I wanted to move on I had to leave everything else behind me, even the people that I cared most about. I broke the phone and threw it away, it was that simple.

Another month went past and I got an unexpected message from Klaus asking me to meet him at the outskirts of New Orleans. It's not like I got into a car and did everything he said, but I was in dept to him for saving Damon's life once and we did used to be friends. He sounded very desperate.

It didn't take me long to get there but I wasn't expecting what I saw. An infant wrapped tightly in his arms. I didn't know what to say.

"In spite of our differences there is no one I would trust more with my daughter's life" a baby? How was this possible? I really wasn't in a position to ask too many questions because he told me we didn't have much time. Haley was her mother; she died after giving birth but came back as a hybrid. This was one special girl. He was asking me to take care of her for however long was needed. "Her name's Hope" he said giving a kiss to her forehead and giving her over to me.

"I promise you..." I said looking at his eyes full of tears, first time I've seen him like this "I will not let anything happen to her." I got into my car and Klaus was already gone, it must have been hard even for him. Family means everything to him.

I looked at little Hope in my arms and just realised that my whole world was probably going to turn around for some time. How was I going to manage this? I wasn't ready to be a guardian, but it didn't look like I had much choice. When I got home I laid down her little sleeping body on my bed, she looked so peaceful. I was probably going to have to go and buy all the necessary things for her, like a crib.

I turned off the light and when to sit on the couch, took my phone out and called her.

"Hello?" I missed her "who is this?"

"Elena, its Stefan"

"Stefan? Oh my God, you don't return any of our calls where are you? Have you found something?"

"No I'm just calling to say I'm sorry, I haven't found anything. I'm staying in Perth. I want to start over. Demon's gone Elena."

"What do you mean start over? You have to come back. You can't give up. If.. If you give up then it means I will need to give up" she was crying "And I can't, I just can't. I love him"

"I'm sorry Elena, we got to try and more forward, move on. I know I did" and I hang up. I know it's not what she wanted to hear and it was a complete lie on my side because I haven't moved on. I lost my brother, and I would do anything to get him back, but it's not possible. She needs to let go.

_Week later_

Taking cared of Hope wasn't easy. I had to take some time off work because Hope needed to be taken care of 24/7. I was exhausted, I didn't have time for myself anymore and soon I would have to figure something out because I needed to work or they were going to fire me. I decided that this time I would act human, get a job the proper way, used compulsion only when necessary and that's why it was that hard for me.

Hope was finally asleep when I heard something downstairs. Klaus warned me that there were vampires or werewolves going to be looking for her, trying to harm her. If anyone found as here we would have to leave straight away.

I looked round the kitchen and saw nothing, but I did take the knife for percussion. I walked around round the living room when a book was chucked of off my head; I turned around only to be pinned to the floor by someone.

"You idiot! You didn't return any of my calls, do you have any idea has scared I was that something happened to you?"

"Caroline? What are you doing here?" I asked as she got of off me

"Elena told me where you were. I mean, seriously? You called your ex but not your best friend. Thanks a lot Stefan" she glared in my direction

"You know it's not like that"

"It's not? Then tell me why you couldn't even pick up the dumb phone?" I can see the hurt in her eyes, _I'm so sorry Caroline _"We needed you, I needed you. And you didn't care" I had no idea how to answer to this. I hurt her; she had every right to be mad. The tears were staring to pool in her eyes. I couldn't take it any longer to see my best friend in pain and took her into a crushing hug.

"I'm so sorry Caroline. I missed you."

After a few minutes like this, we sat down on my couch and had a drink of whiskey. We talked for a bit, she told me how she dropped out of college, how she and Sheriff Forbes meet just outside Mystic Falls every other Sunday and how she actually became quite good friends with Enzo, because there was no one else with her. I felt bad about that last part; I wasn't there for her when I should have been.

"Sooo.." she started "Are you going to come back with me no?" I can see her hopefulness in her eyes.

"Caroline, it's not that simple. I can't go. I'm starting over"

"It is simple, you pack your bags and we go back. You can start over at Whitmore with your friends around" she smiled at me.

"I just can't" she wasn't happy with my answer, after a few minutes of silence and me finishing my drink I think she realised she wasn't going to change my mind and said.

"Well then, I think I better go" she said standing up, and heading towards the door. That's when I heard the silent cry of Hope upstairs.

"Caroline wait!" I said and she turned around surprised probably hoping I changed my mind "Let me show you the reason I can't go back"

I can see she was confused but she followed me upstairs to my bedroom without asking questions anyway. I walked up to the crib and introduced her to now fully awake Hope "This is Hope" I said looking at her shocked expression.

"Oh my god"

**I love Steroline, there is a clip on youtube that I can add a link to, if you want to. It really inspired me to write this story. I hope you liked the first chapter, I promise It's going to get interesting.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Carolines POV**

A baby. I was not expecting this.

"She's Klaus and Haleys daughter" what? Vampires can't have children, can they? "She's two weeks old. Klaus asked me to take care of her, nobody can know Caroline" he warned, his eyes piercing through mine, holding my wrist.

"What... I.I" I didn't know what to say. Little Hope started to cry and Stefan took her out of the crib into his strong arms. We sat dawn on the floor with Hope in his arms waiting for her to fall asleep again. "How long is he expecting you to take care of his child?"

"Caroline I don't know, I wasn't in a position to ask questions. All he told me was that she was special and that she needed to be protected."

"Why you? I don't want to sound rude but you weren't best friend when he left Mystic Falls after our graduation."

"I'm the only one that he can trust now, Elijah's with him and Haley in New Orleans trying to set things right and Rebekah left after their fight. He didn't have a lot of choice" after a moment of silence as we watch the little angel finally giving up and falling asleep he adds "Family means everything to him. He wants her to have a normal life, even if it's for a few years."

He puts the baby back into her crib and we go downstairs to sit at the table in the kitchen.

"What are you going to do? Have you actually thought everything through?"

"No, I have no idea what I'm going to do" he said sadly "I missed you, you know" that last part brought back a small smile to my face

"Ok then... I won't tell anyone but I want to help you if you're willing to have your best friend in your new life"

"Thank you"

"No need to thank me" I said to him taking his hand in mine, I can see how stressed and exhausted he was "we need each other, Stefan".

It was really late so I decided to head back to Whitmore College where I was staying for the time being even though I wasn't attending any classes anymore. We decided that the only person I told was my mum because if I was going to help him raise a baby my mum needed to know where I was going to be. We also agreed that from next week he would go back to work and I would go over to his place and take care of her, it's not like I had better things to do.

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After seeing him I was happy that somehow he finally wants to start over, not grieving over his brother or worse turning into the ripper again. I tried looking for a way to bring Bonnie and Damon back, even Enzo helped me, for nothing. There is nothing that can be done unfortunately.

I never imagined Stefan with a baby, and it's not because he is a vampire but because he doesn't seem like the family type apart from Damon I mean. But seeing him with this little girl, I've never seen him like this.

I don't know how is this going to work, when I dropped out of college I wanted to do something different. I was a vampire for God's sake, I wouldn't age, and I could do anything I wanted. I suddenly remembered the conversation that I had with Klaus at the ball; even if he wanted to charm me he was right, I wanted to travel, go places, and do different things because I knew the truth that I could never have a family, a baby being a vampire.

And of course I will help him, he is my best friend but I'm just scared that it will be hard for me knowing the truth. That this... can never be mine.

**Stefan POV**

It's been 3 months since the unexpected visit Caroline paid us. I have to say though I am grateful though that Caroline was being... Caroline. She helped me a lot with things I had no idea about, and in exchanged she could forget about everything else while taking care of this little girl. Both of us have gotten attached to Hope.

We started to have this routine - every morning I would get up feed Hope, wait for Caroline as she got over from Whitmore, got to work, come back and have peaceful diner that Caroline made earlier on in the day. With blood bags for dissert.

Today I got off work earlier with Nathan, a guy that I'm working with at the garage, because our boss was off. He lives near my neighbourhood so we walked back together talking about last night's football game, as I got near to my house I saw Caroline trying to take the stroller inside the house with Hope inside failing miserably. Nathan must have seen her too because he said,

"Man, you never told me you had such a hot wife" he said punching me lightly in my chest "although if I were you I wouldn't want her to go out of the house too, wouldn't want a man to steal such a beauty" I chuckled quietly, but deep inside I started to wander if Caroline was ever going to leave me and Hope. How long could we keep this up? I didn't want her to leave, ever. I needed her and so did Hope. But whenever she wasn't with me she was with Enzo, she says they're not together but I know she has a thing for man with accents.

I said my goodbye and run up to Caroline to help her with the stroller,

"Thank God Stefan, I couldn't get the dumb thing inside" even whe she was angry she was adorable "You're early, we were just at the park weren't we Hope?" She says picking up Hope talking and making funny faces at her as though she understood everything that was being said. She had grown so much from the little infant she was just not long ago. Her little blue sparkling eyes were staring straight at me smiling, she must have missed me just as much as I missed her, but these weren't the eyes that I was focused on right now "Yeah why don't you take Hope and play with her or something while I go and make us and Hope something for dinner"

"Yep, no problem" I said as she handed me Hope over. I placed as small kiss on the little girls head and did the same to Caroline's cheek automatically.

**Carolines POV**

I turned around, and sprinted to the kitchen as fast as I could because I could already feel my cheeks were turning red. God, what it happening to me? Why does he have to have such an effect on me? _Get over yourself Caroline! _I told myself. _You can't think of him as more than a friend. He doesn't feel the same way._

Through the past few months Stefan and I had been spending a lot of time together. Raising a child wasn't as easy as it looked. Sometimes I even stayed to watch a movie with Stefan or order Chinese like the older days without so much drama that was going on in Mystic Falls. Was this how our lives were going to look like? Sometimes when I was alone I wondered what I was doing, I could just walk out and start over somewhere like Stefan. Without looking back and even Enzo was confused to why I was really doing it. I didn't own anything to Klaus. Truth was that I didn't want to let Stefan go, I didn't want to lose him. And now when I have grown so attached to Hope, I am scared that one day someone will take her away from us. I love that little girl.

I microwaved the spaghetti that I made earlier today and made Hope her milk and mashed little pieces of apple that she could eat now, to take my mind of things.

"Diner's ready!" I called them over and walked over to the counter were my phone was sitting at, Elena called me earlier today but I didn't have time to call her back " You two eat while I'll call Elena and see what's wrong" I said smiling

"Elena...?"

**Stefan POV**

I loved her food, even though it was microwaved today it still tasked so good. Her baking was even better, I guess now she had a lot of time to perfect it being at home with Hope. Once I finished I looked over at where Hope was sitting with a mess on her baby chair that she made with her apples still drinking her milk.

I noticed that throughout the whole conversation that Caroline had with Elena over the phone, she would look my way first worried and then smiling once in a while whispering something to her. I couldn't hear anything they said because I was a little busy trying to clean up Hope's mess.

After I was finished I placed Hope in the crib and waited patiently for Caroline to come and tell me what was going on.

"Stefan?"

"In here," I shouted from my bedroom "What's going on Caroline?" I really started to worry

"You might want to sit down" she said with a big smile plastered on her face. I did as she said, sitting on my bed and waited for her to explain. "Demon's back".

To say that I was shocked was an understatement. I just reconciled with the fact that Damon was dead, gone and now he was back. How?

"What do you mean he's back?"

"I don't know, Elena told me he was in some kind of prison on the other side but he got out Stefan" I didn't know what do think. I looked for a way for him to come back and I found nothing. And now, after all this time he appears again? "I think you should go there and see him" she said putting her fragile hand on my back. Even though she wasn't a big fan of Damon she knew how important he was to me.

"What about Hope? It's already really late and I can't bring her with me there"

"Don't worry, I will stay the night and take care of her. You go and see your brother" I knew that there wasn't a point in trying to argue with her so I just agreed eager to see my brother after all this time.

"Damon?" I called once I entered the house.

The lights were on but he wasn't anywhere in sight. I walked into one of the bigger living rooms and found him holding Elena up against the wall.

I just walked in on them having sex, great.

"Stefan?! " Elena shouted surprised and got away from him and put her shirt back on using her vampire speed. This couldn't be more awkward, "Ok... I'm going to go, It's good to see you Stefan and I'll see you tomorrow Damon" she said and left after giving him one last kiss.

About a year ago that would still have an effect on me. Elena used to be my first love, and of course I will always love her but not in the same way. I am happy that she and Damon are back together at last, she was shuttered after Damon left and I loved her in a sisterly way so of course it hurt me too.

Elena makes my brother a better person, I know that their meant to be together now.

"So...came back from the dead and got laid the same day. Impressive brother" I said smirking

"Come here" he said as we met each other half way and hugged.

"I missed you"

"I missed you two Stefan" after our little moment, we sat down in front of the fire place, facing each other with vintage whiskey between as.

We talked about everything that was going on while he wasn't here and of course I told him about Hope and our little arrangement with Caroline. Actually it was me talking most of the time; I could see that he didn't want to talk about things that happened to him when he was on the other side. He had told me though that it was Bonnie that helped him get out and that he was going to bring her back no matter what.

"Soo... Blondie and Stefan sitting on a tree" He started to sing with his eyes half closed

"Damon" I warned

"What? You two got awfully close during those last few months. Don't tell me there is nothing between the two of you!"

"There is nothing..."

"Yet!" he exclaimed without even letting me finish what I was going to say "Do you feel something towards her? Do you want something to be there?" What was I supposed to say?

"It's complicated"

"Oh it always is, just don't wait too long to realise you actually want to be with her. And it's about time you were the the one that got laid."

At that he quickly changed the subject probably not wanting to piss me of tonight or not wanting it to turn into some kind of fight.

The hours went on and before I realised it was early in the morning. He knew that I couldn't visit often from now on because of Hope but he could come over whenever I was home. He agreed and promised he will let me know when Bonnie will be back home, safe.

When I got home I thought Caroline and Hope would have been already up knowing that little angle didn't like to sleep in the mornings, but judging from the awfully quite house they were both probably still asleep.

I walked to upstairs to my room and found Caroline and Hope both in my bed. They both looked so peaceful, so quiet unlike their usual selves. I noticed that Caroline was wearing one of my old shirts that she probably found in the back of one of my drawer, she could have it. It looked much better on her. She also had short shorts that didn't cover much and didn't leave much to imagination. Her arm was safely wrapped around Hope probably making sure she didn't fall off the bed during the night. Looking at _my girls_ made my heart speed up.

I sat down on the edge of the bed and stared at them peacefully sleeping for a little longer before Caroline started to stir in her sleep and finally woke up.

"Stefan, Hi" she said still rubbing her sleepy eyes with her soft hands "I'm sorry I guess I must have fallen asleep on your bed last night after Hope woke up in the middle of night I should have..."

"Caroline It's fine" she smiled, gave me a kiss on the cheek and started to walk back to the guest room where I guess she slept before "Hey wait" she stopped and looking in my direction. "Look I.. I think you should move in. I mean.. you spend most of your days with us anyway soo..."

"Really?" she asked, and I could see how happy she suddenly was.

"Yeah there is more than enough space for the three of us, you can have the guest room"

"Oh my Gosh thank you Stefan" she run up to me and gave me a quick peck on the lips that surprised me.

**I hope you liked this chapter, I will upload the next one soon ;)..**


	3. Chapter 3

**Stefan's POV**

"Once upon a time there lived a majestic King, who lived with his noble brother in a colourful kingdom where music and art was celebrated. The king did not for see having a child but he lived in an enchanted land where all things were possible. In time he was blessed with a beautiful baby daughter, for whom he only wished peace and happiness. Still, the king had demons, who persuade him. There was a ruthless beast who wanted to take the kingdom for her own. Armed with a pack of untamed creatures, she drove the other magical creature from their land. And there was a wicked sorceress, with enchanted stones that weakened the king on every full moon.

Seeing the shadow his enemies cased upon his home, the king was driven to send his beloved princess away, convincing all who remained that she was forever lost. The king, in his sorrow turned away from the world. The castle closed its doors and the kingdom fell. Some say that the only light shines in the castle, illuminates the shadow of the once mighty king in the room meant for his child. But as the ruthless beast took rule over the fallen kings round, little did they know that he and his brother would not rest until their enemies were vanquished, for they believed that one day they would heal their kingdom and bring their princess home so that she may live, happily ever after."

I stood in the doorway, looking at Caroline sitting on the floor with her legs crossed, just beside Hopes crib with her arm going in between the wooden poles so that she could hold our little angels hand as she told her, her bedtime story.

It wasn't the first time I heard her telling it to her. I'm sure you could guess it was about her father. Although Klaus thought it was better Hope only saw me and Caroline as her only family, Caroline thought that it was important to tell her where she came from, from the very beginning.

It's almost unbelievable how quickly we got attached to this little creature. I never imagined myself with kids; if I knew it was going to look like this I would have a whole new perspective on life. Of course it was hard at the beginning, I had no idea how to change her nappy for example or that children couldn't eat specific things until they reached a certain age. But I had Caroline, she helped me with everything. She was my other angel.

Caroline told me many times before that she always imagined herself with a husband, at least two children and someday grandchildren that she could spoil. I knew that if it was possible, she would have been a great mum. But it's something I cannot give her. Although she doesn't talk about it anymore, whenever her birthday comes near she gets miserable because she knows she will never age and never have these things in life that she could have had if she was still a human.

Neither of us knows how long we will have with Hope, but we're trying to make the best of it. Cherishing every moment we have with her.

I was so distracted that I didn't notice she fell asleep resting beside the crib. Not wanting to wake her up I carried her back into her room, placed her gently in her bed and put the covered over her legs. She looked so beautiful, but it's not like I didn't notice before. The thought of her never really leaves my mind.

I started to see that Lexi maybe was right. There was definitely something between Caroline and me even if I didn't want to admit it to myself before.

I sat next to her on the bed and just stared at her for a second or two. This girl had no idea what she was doing to me; when she would come up to me during the day and place a small kiss on my cheek, or lips by mistake from time to time and then I would have to find myself any excuse to kiss her back, how she blushed and made me want to take her into my bedroom, and how she always was just there next to me.

Was it bad of me to think of Caroline, my best friend, this way?

I think I have to take a cold shower.

**Caroline's POV **

I woke up and for the first time in a long time I actually slept really well. It was 9am and Stefan was supposed to be going to work in a while, I haven't even made him breakfast yet. He should have woken me up.

I get dressed using my vampire speed and walk downstairs as fast as I can only to find Stefan already eating with Hope in his arms as she was drinking her milk in a little bottle. I look opposite him and see another plate on the table with scrambled eggs and bacon, my favourite. I think my face said it all because he says with a matching smile on his face..

"Look Hope, sleepy head is finally up" pointing in my direction with his fork

"Stefan you should have woken me up"

"You looked really tired yesterday, you fell asleep next to Hope and I had to carry you to your bed" I think I was as red as a tomato when he said this "and any way me and Hope made breakfast today for a change, haven't we sweetheart?" he throw her up a bit in the air and she just giggled "But I have to go to work so girls, have a nice day. I'll see you later" he said placing Hope in my arms and giving me a quick peck on the lips.

"Stefan!" I shouted as he was just about to leave "thank you for the breakfast" I said as I returned his kiss.

Our day with Hope went on as usually nothing special. We went to the park, then she watched teletubbies and I cleaned up the house a little. After that I gave Hope her milk and finally took her upstairs so that she could have her nap.

I was just about to make dinner but first I called Elena to see how things were going in College and with Damon.

"Elena, hi"

"Hi, Care. You haven't been in touch lately."

"I know I'm sorry, it's just that there is so much here to do with Hope that I never had time. Anyway, tell me how are things with you and Damon?" Of course she already knew about Hope due to Damon not keeping his mouth shut,

"We're good, but his still trying to find a way to help Bonnie on the other side"

"Well I hope it will work out somehow"

"Yeah me too, by the way Damon told me that you moved in with Stefan. Is there anything between you and Stefan Care?"

"What? No... I mean.. Why would you even think that?"

"I'm not stupid, I just wanted to tell you there even if there is something, you have my blessing" Stefan was her first love, and somehow when she said that, it really made me happy.

"Thank you" I answered quietly, almost a whisper

"Never mind, when are you coming to visit? I finally want to meet Hope and..." suddenly I heard a knock on the door. It couldn't be Stefan this early could it?

"Listen Elena, why don't I call you back? I promise you will see her soon. I have to go. Say Hi to Alaric for me at Whitmore"

"Yeah ok, bye Care!"

When I opened the door I saw two well build men at the door, I never seen them before in my life. Maybe it was a mistake. I mean.. we never had any visitors.

"Hi, can I help you?"

"Hello, yes" said a man on the right "I'm looking for Stefan Salvatore, I'm his friend, I think he lives here, is he home by any chance?" I can see that he was lying, they both acted so strange, one was looking around like making sure that nobody saw them and the other was eager to came inside the house.

Stefan warned me that this might happen.

I didn't even wait to shut the door in the guy face, unfortunately he was too strong. He couldn't be a vampire. Vampires can't walk into somebody's house without being invited. Before I knew, they were both inside.

Hope. I had to keep her safe.

I run as fast as I could to get to the stairs, get Hope, and get the hell away from here. I was a bit too slow, before I even used my vampire speed one of them throw a stake at my shoulder. The pain didn't stop me, I got to Hopes and took the stake out even though I could still feel splinter in my shoulder.

There wasn't enough time for me to even get my phone; I ran back down stairs, just in time, and got out by the back door.

What now? If I go to where Stefan is they might follow me because it's not far away and they might hurt him, I couldn't risk that.

I got into my car as fast as I could with Hope still asleep and drove off as quickly as it was possible. Looks like Elena was going to see us sooner than she thought.

"Elena..?!" I shouted as I got to her dorm room, breathing heavily. I felt like I was about to pass out, the splinters must have dug even deeper into my skin.

"Caroline, why are you... Oh my god" she said as she saw in what state I just came in. I handed her over the baby and collapsed on the floor choking up blood.

"You need to... you need to get.. The splinter out of my arm and chest" she didn't hesitate; she took Hope and set her on her bed while she took care of my wounds. "They came for Hope"

"they? Vampires from New Orleans?"

"They couldn't have been vampires, they must have been either werewolves or witches"

"Ok, I'm done. It should heal in a while. I'm going to call Stefan, Damon and bring you blood bags. You stay here next to Hope"

I didn't have to wait long, Damon came back with Elena and Stefan came after them not long after. He saw me sitting next to sleeping Hope and in a flash took me into his strong arms.

"Are you okay? What happened?"

"I don't know, they.. they came and said they were looking for you and before I knew it they were inside the house. I looked like they were looking around for something... someone. They must have been looking for Hope, Stefan" I said with fear in my eye. "We.. we can't go back. They'll find us"

"I know.. I know" He said, drawing small patterns with his hand on my back, calming my nerves down.

"You were too close to Mystic Falls, that's why they found you" stated Damon, leaning against the wall with one arm around Elena's waist.

"Your right, we need to move, and fast."

"I'll go and take care of things for you in Perth so you don't have to go back there brother"

"Thank you" he said with real sincerity in his eyes.

"Ok well I need to tell my mum that I'm leaving and..." she would be worried; I had to tell her I had to move with them, they were my family now.

"Caroline, I put your life in danger. I think you should stay with Elena, its better that way" said Stefan not looking into my eyes any more,

"What?" I said standing up straight next to the bed like he did too "no... no, I'm coming with you and Hope. You.. you don't want me with you and Hope? Have I..."

"Caroline, I'm just worried. I don't want anything to happen to you because of this whole situation"

"We need each other, don't you dare push me away!" I shouted "Have I done something wrong?" I asked with tearing eyes. Maybe he was just sick of me..

"No, no. You've done nothing wrong"

"Then I'm coming with you"

"If that's what you really want" he said as he pulled me into his arms once more "just please don't cry"

After I calmed down, I phoned my mum telling her I needed to leave with Hope and Stefan for a while and it was best if she didn't know why and while I did that Stefan finally properly introduced little princess to Elena and Damon when she had woken up.

I saw Hope in Elena's arms playing with her long wavy hair and Stefan besides her laughing at Hopes intrigued face; they looked like I once imagined their future together. Did Stefan really have no more romantically feelings toward her? He told me more than once before that he didn't but I wasn't sure any more. Maybe he was just playing along because he knew she loved Damon and knew they wouldn't be together.

"We're going to miss you. Phone us once in a while and visit soon." Elena said as we were saying our goodbyes beside Stefan's car

"We will, don't worry"

"I hope things will work out with Hope and everything"

"Yeah me too, bye Elena" I hugged her once more before getting into the car and waiting for Stefan as Damon whispered something into his ear. They said their goodbyes and Stefan drove off, It felt so weird leaving them behind but then I remember the reason why we were doing this. And the reason was the little girl in the back. "soo... where are we going?"

"Jacksonville, Florida" he said with a smile on his face placing a small kiss on my lips.

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter, there's going to be some action in the next one between Caroline and Stefan if you know what I mean :3. Leave a comment below if you enjoyed this chapter, or any other feedback ;) **


	4. Chapter 4

**Stefan's POV **

I chose Jacksonville because Mystic Falls then would be on the other side of the country, therefore much harder to find us. It's just as well that I bought an apartment here in the late 90s, the house was furnished so we could move in straight away.

It's been a few weeks and I know I need to call Klaus and tell him what happened but I rather wait a little longer. I also haven't found a job yet.. It's not as though we need money, we're vampires and me and Damon have a lot of money saved up from all these years, but we want to be normal people. The reason I haven't even started looking for it, is because I feel uncomfortable leaving Caroline and Hope for too long by themselves after what happened in Perth when I wasn't with them. I blamed myself, Caroline got hurt because of me.

I can see that she is starting to get annoyed with me following her every step, although she doesn't say anything because she can see how worried I am something like that will happen again. I need to get a grip, since when have I became so protective and possessive? I mean I was protective of Elena in many ways but not like this.

When Caroline wasn't with me it was like I couldn't function properly, couldn't breathe. On the day that we finally got here Hope wasn't in her best shape, she was very tired and because the furniture in the new apartment wasn't really appropriate for a small child, she didn't even have a crib the first day.

It was late at night and everyone was tired too after a long car ride Caroline and me settled on the king size bed in the bedroom with Hope in the middle, cautious not to hurt her. We bought Hope her crib and all the other necessities the next day but our sleeping arrangement somehow didn't change. We didn't do anything, just talked until we fell asleep next to each other. I wasn't complaining, sometimes we would wake up with our legs tangled with each other or cuddled together which would follow by Caroline apologising and running out embarrassed, but the best part was just walking up to _her_.

The feelings that I had for her were rapidly growing stronger and I knew that if I didn't do something about them I would go crazy. Either I had to put a stop to this, or step up and tell her how I felt.

_You can either be friends with someone or in love with them; I don't think you can be both. _

I intended to talk to her today, our neighbours were really polite humans and they invited us the first next day we got to Jacksonville. Today however they proposed that they would stay with Hope and give as a night off.

At first Caroline and I were very cautious about them, but after about 3 more dinners we stated that they were actually really nice. The newlyweds as we found out, were in their 20s, had a small son called Jake and were both paediatricians. When they first met us they thought that me and Caroline were also married and had a child together, she was about to set them straight when I thought that it would be better if they thought that Hope was our biological daughter. I didn't know them and I didn't want them to ask too many questions at first. After a serious talk with Caroline, a bit of shouting and apologising from both sides we decided to pretend to be engaged.

Caroline of course needed a lot persuading to leave Hope with Sam and Alec (our neighbours), but she knew Hope would be in good hands so she finally agreed. Both of us needed a good night out.

It was about 8pm when I brought Hope over to Sam and Alec, stayed there a bit to explain her routine (when she goes to sleep, when she eats) and both mine and Carolines phone numbers just in case.

I tried to stay there as long as possible because 1) saying goodbye to Hope was hard and 2) I wanted to give Caroline some time to dress up just like she asked. I told her that I wanted to take her out to dinner and I quote 'just as friends of course'. After I said it, I somehow regretted it and wanted to swallow the words right away when I saw her face fell.

Ok, I gave her 20 minutes. I said my goodbyes, thanked our new friends and got myself mentally as ready as I could for the night ahead.

**Caroline's POV**

I knew that sooner or later Stefan and I were going to have to talk about the relationship between us, or whatever it was that we had. We left Perth now a few weeks ago and I didn't really have time to take a lot of my staff, and since Stefan hasn't left my side for longer than thirty minutes I didn't really have a chance to go shopping and buy myself a dress to go on a date. I didn't really think I would need one.

As I was trying to get myself into that black lace evening dress, and trust me it wasn't easy because it was so tight. I stopped half way when I started to wonder why was I even bothering? I mean Stefan said it himself; it was nothing more than just a night out with a close friend. Just as well I could wear my sweatshirt and pants. _Oh Caroline, why are you getting your hopes up again? Only to be rejected. _He probably asked my out anyway just to keep the appearance of a couple in front of Sam and Alec when they offered to stay with Hope while we have some time to our selves.

I finished getting ready and waited for Stefan a couple of minutes before I heard the doorbell. In those few minutes I looked at the photos above the fireplace of Stefan, Hope and me, all of us sitting on the floor in the living room with Hope in between us. You could see that it was Stefan taking the picture with one hand sticking out obviously holding the camera. It was only our second day there, he insisted on the pictures because apparently he wanted to show Klaus how Hope was growing so fast but the next day the pictures were already hanging in this very place. Now I kind of understood why Sam though we were a family, we looked like one, and a really happy one at that. The one that I thought I would have one day. _What are we doing? Playing house?_

As soon as I opened the door all of these thought were gone. Stefan stood, casually leaning against the doorframe with his perfectly styled hair and dressed in his black jeans, a black shirt that you could see has three unbuttoned buttons from his collar and his black t-shirt underneath sticking out just a bit. He didn't need to make any effort to look good because he already was ridiculously handsome. I was so consumed by his appearance that I didn't even notice the little bouquet of flowers in his hand.

"These are for you" he said clearing his throat after some time and handing me the flowers, _so I wasn't the only one checking him out. _

"Thank you, their beautiful"

"Just like you..." I thought heard faintly as I was walking to put them in water "You ready?"

"Yep, I'm ready..."

...

We sat at the very back of a nice little French restaurant called "Le Ciel" that happened to be not very far from Stefan's apartment. He probably picked it out on purpose just to be close to Hope, not that I blamed him. The restaurant wasn't really in my style, the control freak that I was once we got there I thought to myself that I would never plan a perfect date in this place.

I couldn't complain though because It was however Stefan's style; modern little restaurant, at the corner with black, white and red themes around it.

Once we ate our food and called Alec to get an update on how Hope was doing we settled for a walk around the neighbourhood and couldn't stop laughing at some memories that we both shared.

" Ha-ha and do you remember that time when you had that thing with Rebekah?"

"Hey.. Let's not forget your incident with Klaus in the woods" my companion replied earning himself a light hit to the head

"Ok, I don't know what possessed me" and when I thought about it, I stopped laughing "actually that day, I thought it was going to be the last day I have to see or hear about Klaus. That is until Hope appeared" I added with a small smile on my face.

"Look... Caroline, I still remember what you told me at prom"

We stopped walking and I turned myself to come face to face with Stefan "and what would that be?"

"That someday, I will meet someone new and fall in love again"

"And?" where was he going with this?

"And I wanted to tell you, you were wrong" an expected but still very disappointing answer, but this was before he added "I didn't need to meet anyone new, I now understand that I didn't notice what was right before me" my heart skipped a beat when he looked into my eyes with this unfamiliar look to me, holding my much smaller hand in his "And I don't know if it the same love that I had for Elena, I don't. But whatever this is, I think it could turn into something better"

And before I had the chance to analyse everything that he said to me, his soft lips landed on mine. It wasn't demanding, just a sweet little kiss that lasted a moment. _What am I doing? I'm not only taking responsibilities for my actions but I have to think about the little girl at home and how will this affect her._ The kiss would have lasted longer, as Stefan put his muscled arms around my waist and back and waited for me to kiss him back with just as much affection when I suddenly realised that I had to stop this and pulled back from his embrace. Not kissing him back was probably one of the hardest things I had to do recently.

"Stefan I can't..." I said stepping back from him putting my hand over the lips that only seconds ago were touched by his. "I... I... I can't imagine my life now with not having you or Hope in it"

"Then why?..." I could see the obvious confusion on his face

"We can't, we just can't. If we stay friends Stefan.. I have a guarantee that both of you will stay in my life. If we were to be together, things would just get complicated and.."

"It doesn't have to be li..."

"But it will!" I almost shout as he tried to get close to me again. "You know it will, and I love you too much to let this happen." I finish leaving him as quickly as I can in the other direction.

...

I don't know how long I have been walking around for, maybe few hours. I don't have a place to go rather than Stefan's apartment so I just keep walking around the city in those uncomfortable heels. I need to think things through and give Stefan his space as well.

What were we thinking? I mean, I would lie if I said that I didn't want this. But when it actually happened, I started seeing all the obstacles in between.

And I love him, I know I do. I just don't know if I'm in love with him. I know it's a selfish thought but if it came to a choice where he would have to pick between me and Elena, who would he pick?

Even thou it was the middle of the summer, the nights sometimes could get really cold. So when I stopped feeling my toes and fingers I decided it was time to go _home. _

When I got to the front door I picked up my forgotten phone from my purse to see what time it was. _1;00 _in the morning, great. I also noticed about 20 messages from Stefan and missed phone calls.

I tried to unlock the door and come in as quietly as I could inside not to wake either Stefan or Hope, because he probably already brought her home. Stefan and I only agreed to go out for two hours, and it was way past that, so he had to bring her home anyway.

I haven't been as quiet as I thought because when I turned from the front door after I came inside and locked it, the light in the living room turned on and I saw an angry looking Stefan in the arm chair, combing his hair with his hand several times.

"Where have you been?" he finally said calmly after a few moments, resting his hand finally on his legs leaning forward. His calm voice didn't mask his anger, frustration or whatever it was. I didn't know how to reply.

"Is Hope in her crib? Has she eaten anything? I can make her something.."

"Hope is staying the night with Sam and Alec; I asked them to take care of her while we resolve family issues"_ Family issues? _He wasn't even looking at me right now, was he so angry with me now?

"Ok" I quietly and simply said after cautiously stepping further into the living room.

1 minute nothing...

2 minutes nothing...

I was just waiting for him to say something, anything and I didn't have to wait long. His outburst came straight away when I put my things down on the small coffee table opposite me.

"I HAVE BEEN WORRIED SICK!" he finally stood up, using his vampire power run to stand right in front of me to shout in my face. "I CALLED! You could have at least answered and tell me you were alright, Caroline what were you thinking?"

"I was jus.."

"You were what?" seeing him pacing around all because of me, scared the shit out of me, I hurt him and I regretted it so much. "You know I promised myself that I would never leave you, not again, and to protect you. You're making it really hard for me, you know that?"

"I'm sorry" all of this brought tears to my eyes, "I'm really sorry"

"I care about you... so much" he said capturing my face in his hands and brushing away the tears that stained my cheeks with his fingers "Maybe you don't need to hear it. But I need to know that I.. I said it. I'm the one that needs you now.. Don't leave me Caroline. Not ever."

I knew that he meant what he said; he would never lie to me. And in that moment I realised exactly what I wanted and what I was going to fight for. I hesitantly reached out and grabbed his hand which he then pulled towards his heart. He looked at me and smiled his perfect smile, the one I missed so much, pulled me in close so that every inch of our bodies were touching and gave me a kiss so deep that it was sure to leave bruises.

His tongue felt hot and sweet as it probed the inner contours of my mouth; teasing my bottom lip with a bite and sucking its tender flesh. I could feel an intimate fire seethe and unfurl within my stomach; the cool touch of his fingers finding their way under the material of my dress. Within seconds with found ourselves in _our _bedroom. The soft caress of his skin against my own was deadly; enough to send electric spasms of joy coursing through my thighs and spine. I suddenly found myself curving my body into him, towards his heated skin and now bare chest. And As I dared to thread my fingers through his soft locks; our eyes met, crystal blue into deep green.

"Don't ever leave me again" The voice was familiar, whispering softly against my ear... dripping with erotic passion and craving.

I didn't need to reply; I slammed our lips together, my hips straddling his thighs as he positioned himself on the bed, and my hand unbuckling his belt.

**Sorry it took me so long to write, I hope you liked it. Comment below and give some feedback. Any propositions on what should happen? :) **


	5. Chapter 5

**Stefan's POV**

That day couldn't get any better, but it did; we didn't get much sleep that night, waking up next to Caroline, her facing me in her sleep with her left hand underneath my pillow and my hand resting on her soft bare back keeping her close to my exposed chest. She looked so peaceful in her sleep, unlike her normal bubbly self.

When she left me standing outside by myself and didn't come back for God knows how long, she scared the shit out of me. Does she not see that I need to keep her and Hope safe? The thought of them getting hurt drives me crazy. I guess she means much more to me than I thought.

So after our eventful 'night activities' let's say, I haven't take my eyes off of her. I watched her fall asleep carefully resting by her side and wishing that this moment could last forever.

_I realised that I might not be able to explain what I feel for her but it is something. And when I'm with her, every bone in my body tells me to join her, to enjoy it. There's this part of me that just can't seem to shake her. Unlike anyone else she was always there for me, always beside me._

"Well.. Good morning" she said with a beautiful smile on her face while yawing

"Good morning to you too" I said with a matching smile on my face and after I caressed her soft cheek, I kissed those tempting lips. My hand finds hers, threading our fingers together, and my lips moving against hers with fervour that she all too happily matches and I almost loose it at that moment when her tongue runs of my bottom lip. I open my mouth, engaging her tongue in a passionate duel while my hand wanders down to her waist, pulling her impossibly closer to my body. When air finally becomes a necessity and we pull apart only far enough to lean our foreheads against each other, I don't even know how much time passed but I can't seem to look away from her slightly swollen lips.

"Hope" she finally whispers with a spark in her eyes

"And where are you going now?" I ask after she escapes my grip

"It's late, my going to pick up Hope" she says after she wonders around the room putting on her thongs and picking up my black shirt and putting it over her head

"You know... you should wear my clothes more often" I say with a slight smirk on my face, she turns around and sticks her tongue out at me. She looks so hot right now, "fine, I'll make some coffee"

"Thank you" and after that she quickly disappears in the living room, probably picking up our scattered clothes from last night of the floor, typical controlling Caroline.

After I got dresses in record time, I went into the kitchen preparing our coffee when I hear the doorbell. Maybe Caroline won't have to go and pick up Hope after all; I guessed it would be Alec with her at the door. I was not expecting the people that were standing behind the door.

"Surprise!" shouts Elena while Bonnie appears from behind Damon and Alaric wearing a huge smile on her face

"Bonnie?" She's back, Bennie's back "Oh my God we missed you" I say capturing her in a bear hug.

"I missed you too Stefan, I hear a lot of changed in these few months"

"We thought that it would be a great idea to come here and tell you personally" says Elena while holding onto my brother. I can see their really happy. "So.. Where's Care Stefa.."

"Stefan have you seen my phone? I can find it!" I let go of Bonnie when I see the stunned look on my brothers face and look behind be, to see Caroline still only in my black shirt. "Bonnie? Bonnie You're here" she takes a few steps forward probably trying to capture her in a hug to when she notices the grins on everyone else faces and turns around to run to the bathroom "Oh my god, I'll .. I'll get dresses and I'll be right back"

"Well Brother" starts Damon "We can all see that you really did keep busy those last few months"

"Damon" I warn him while the girls giggle.

...

While Caroline got changed, I invited everyone into the apartment and made breakfast with the help of Elena and Bonnie.

"Where's Hope? Is she still sleeping?"

"Actually" Caroline appeared out of nowhere "She stayed today with a friends of ours, I was on my way to pick her up"

"I can come with you, I really want to meet her" offers Bonnie and Elena follows behind them.

"We'll be back soon" she turns and they leave as alone in the kitchen.

We sat there in silence, but I knew it wouldn't stay that way for long when I saw the amusement in his eyes and Alaric trying very hard not to burst out laughing, staffing his face with pancakes "I'm glad you find amusement in this" I finally say while he finally gives up and laughs.

"Sorry, it's just I knew you would figure it out sooner or later" answers Damon

"Yes how? If I didn't even think about her as more than a friend"

"That would make a good girlfriend, look one - she's hot, objectively"

"Two - She puts up with you" adds Alaric

"Big plus, three - very, very organised"

"Organisational skills?" I ask, is he serous?

"There are no drawbacks to this woman Stefan" he says after he puts a piece of bacon in his mouth

"Eeee she did sleep with you Damon" points out Alaric while it was my time to laugh.

"See? Another plus" continues Damon but we don't get a chance to finish the conversation because the girls got back.

I see _my girl_ walking towards the table introducing little Hope to Alaric and I walk up to them straight away to say hello to our baby. I pick her up in my arms and throw her in the air a couple of times making her giggle and sure not to drop the little angle. I turn with Hope in my arms, and Caroline on my left side to face the rest of my family smiling warmly up at us.

"We see you're happy" says Bonnie while I turn to look down at Caroline

"We are" Caroline answers for me grinning up at me with a slight pink tint to her cheeks.

"Okay" Damon interrupts our little moment "Uncle Damon wants to hold Hope for a second if that's alright" Damon with kids? Is that a really good idea I wondered.

"Maybe Alaric should hold her" Elena interrupts "he needs the practice" she says giggling

"Alaric?" asks Caroline confused

"Yeah, you see Bonnie's not the only reason we're here" he finally says "I'm getting married"

"Alaric that's great, sudden but great!" exclaims Caroline as she rushes to congratulate him

"That's great man, you deserve to be finally happy"

"He deserves to get some" Demon remarks as the rest of us start laughing and he gets a smack in the head from Elena.

"And I was wondering if you two would come with us back to Mystic falls for the wedding it's completely safe for vampires thanks to her brother. It won't be anything big, but I want you and Demon to be my grooms men and since Jo doesn't keep in contact with much of her family we would like you girls to be the bridesmaids." Alaric was one of my close friends, but I needed to remember why we moved in the first place, to keep Hope safe. I look down at the little girl now playing in Alaric's lap and wondered if it was safe.

"We will keep them safe Stefan, and anyway. Most of the vampires still think Mystic Falls is an off zone for the supernatural species" Elena reassures me.

"Well then" I look over at the excited Caroline "I guess we better start packing"

**Carolines POV**

For the rest of the day me and Stefan didn't really get a moment just for the two of us. We ate dinner in town after a busy day with all the packing and catching up. After that awkward moment in the morning, I thought for a while that Stefan would be ashamed for some reason of the thing between us because of Elena.

Elena reassured me multiple times during the time while we went to get Hope, that she was perfectly okay with me and Stefan being together, but I was still worried that him seeing Elena that morning would be a wakeup call for him and at the end of the day he would tell me that all of this was a mistake.

We decided to leave Jacksonville at night, so that Hope would be asleep and she wouldn't be complaining about the ten hour drive to Mystic falls. After me and the girls got a supply of Starbucks coffee for everyone, we split into two cars; Hope, Elena, Bonnie and me in one car and the rest of the boys in the other. We decided to make stops once in a while during the long drive just to stretch our legs, eat something or to change drivers.

"Oh I'm so tired" I said from the back of the car, sitting next to Hope trying to control my yawing

"After the night you had, Oh I'm sure" said Bonnie giggling throwing me a knowing look, thank God that it was Elena driving the car

"Hey! What is that supposed to mean?"

"You know damn well, how was it by the way?"

"BONNIE"

"What? I've been in that prison world for so long, I would want to get some action too" it amazed how Hope managed to stay asleep with all of us laughing really loudly at that last comment.

"Can we not.. talk about it just now? I don't know what it is yet, it hasn't been long. But I promise to tell you when it gets serious"

"From the way he was looking at you the whole day Caroline" Elena turned to look at me with a serious face on "I say it's already very serious" This coming from his first love must have meant something. "But any way, you Bonnie Bennet obviously have some sexual tension with Kai"

"Kai? Jo's brother? The one from the prison world?" I asked so confused right now "I thought that he was the bad guy?"

"He is!" Bonnie immediately answers, too quickly "And I have no idea what you're talking about Elena"

"Sure you do, and correction - he was the bad guy. After the merge with Luke, he got some of his qualities, and he obviously is trying really hard to make your forgive him.."

"Ok, ok. Quiet now- Damon is calling. Hello?" she answers the phone before putting him on the speaker phone

"There's a diner a mile away, I say we stop and get something to eat. I'm starving" he says

"I break would be nice, see you there"

...

It was like the old times, Damon making ridicules jokes with Stefan while the rest of us sat there laughing at them. I could see that even Bonnie and Damon became a lot closer because of the whole prison world thing. It was perfect.

I sat beside Stefan, opposite Elena and Bonnie engaged in a conversation with them while eating my fries. The whole time we were talking, Stefan's hand was present on my lap distracting me from the conversation, travelling up and down my leg under the table while he so easily joked with Damon.

Finally he turned his attention to me, lowered his head to my ear and said "I'm going to the car to check up on Hope. See if she's still sleeping" standing up and telling everyone else where he was going. Suddenly my legs missed his warmth, his warm gentle hands. "You coming?" he didn't stop or turn to face me, but I knew it was directed at me.

I walked to Elena's Range Rover where Hope seemed to be still asleep when Stefan suddenly slammed my back to the door of the car and captured my lips with his. In between the kisses he whispered "I waited all day just to do that" It was too long. _Too fucking long_. "Mine" slipped out of Stefan's lips while he kissed down my neck, wrapping my legs around his waist. My heart stuttered in my chest. _My Stefan_.

My hands came up to cup his face, fingertips running over his stubble. He didn't shave this morning, probably forgot with everything that was going on in the day. When I imagined this, our first kiss after being reunited was frenzied and desperate, trying to make up for the day and in reality it was exactly this with a hint of urgency. While his lips moved over mine, it was almost as if he was trying to savour every millimetre of me, while his hands still firmly under my thighs keeping me off the ground.

After what seemed like forever, he set me down and we broke apart, if only for an inch. Our foreheads were still pressed together when I opened my eyes.

"I missed this" he breathes out and his intense green orbs locked with my eyes

"Me too" I whisper back, while my fingers move slowly over Stefan's stubble.

His eyes move to something behind me and he chuckles "we have an audience"

Knowing that he's talking about our friends, I groan and burry my head in his chest "First this morning, now this. I'll never hear the end of this."

"Why don't you two go in the car with Hope, Damon and Elena while I'll go with Bonnie this time" Alaric proposed.

"Let's go" Stefan says with a laugh and tugs me towards the back doors of the car but not without stealing a kiss.

The drive from there was surprisingly quiet, Hope was still sleeping peacefully; Damon was driving while Elena hold on to one of his hands threading their fingers together. I on the other hand was falling asleep on Stefan's shoulder while his arm was protectively wrapped around me. When I walk up we were already in Mystic falls.

**I'm so sorry it took me so long to write, i hope you like it though ;) Please comment and tell me what you think of the story so far, and any recommendations (what would you like to see happen)?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Caroline POV **

Since the two witches - Bonnie and Jo got really close, Alaric drove both of them to the mansion in Whitmore were the four of them stayed, including Kai. When I asked her about him she swore that there was nothing going on between them, but I could see that there was more to it. But who was I to judge, after the whole Klaus situation.

Speaking of Klaus, we arrived at the Salvatore mansion in the morning and before all of us decided to get some rest- go to sleep, Stefan decided to finally get in contact with him and tell him about everything that has been happening. I thought that it was best not to intrude Stefan's personal space that much and took the room on the second floor next to Demons and Elena's room with Hope.

I prepared some snacks for Hope since she was wide awake now and sat her on the king size bed while I got changed into my sleeping shorts and a t-shirt. The new surrounding really interested her; she carefully studied all the things around her. Hope was a very intelligent child; she grew much faster than a human child which scared me. When I looked at her, I could see certain features that she inherited from her father; her sparkling big blue eyes, curly blond hair and that mesmerising smile that could bring about anyone to her and make them love her.

"Hope? Say Ca-ro-li-ne.. Will you say my name?" I took her in my arms after she finished her food and tickled her trying to convince her to say my name. "Is Ca-ro-li-ne to hard for you? How about Ca-re?"

"a goo... goo.." she started speaking in her own baby language with saliva all over her tiny lips. I guess I would have to wait a little longer for her to say my name.

But how much time did we have together? How long before Klaus appears and asks for Hope, I mean he has every right to do so. "I love you Hope" I said looking at the smiling child in my arms "I will always love you honey"

"What are you doing?" suddenly came a voice that I knew too well from behind me

"What? Nothing Stefan, I was just going to put her back to bed, she needs to rest too"

"No I meant what you are doing in here?" He mentioned to the room surrounding us

"Well.. I thought that Hope and I can take this room for the night. Do you want me to take the one down stairs? Because I can..."

"What no, I meant why didn't you take my room? There's more than enough space for the three of us" he said with some kind of disappointment in his eyes. "You know what? Never mind" he walked up to give her a kiss on her forehead "I'll see my baby in the morning, be good for Care" and I thought that he would lean in to give me a kiss, but instead he turned away and stormed out of the room. _He was pissed. _

...

It didn't take Hope long to fall asleep next to me, with her pacifier in her mouth and her little fingers wrapped around my index finger. I couldn't fall asleep knowing that _he _was upstairs obviously mad at me for some reason. I considered going to him and apologising, but then again what did I have to apologize for? He could be so confusing sometimes.

I tossed and turned on the bed, careful not to wake Hope, and just as I was going to give up on trying falling asleep after the long hours I heard the door open a bit and then close. I quickly turned to face Hope again and closed my eyes shut. I felt a muscled figure slip into bed next to me, wrapping his large arm protectively around me and at the same time bringing me close to him. _He came. _

"I'm sorry" he whispered with his face in my hair "I couldn't sleep there by myself, It didn't feel right"

"Don't be" I managed to somehow answer him, threading my fingers with his and not long after falling into a dreamless sleep.

...

I walk up the next morning to something or rather someone playing with by blond locks. I opened my eyes and saw that Hope was in between me and Stefan playing with my hair while Stefan's elbow was resting on the pillow and his hand was supporting his head, he was whispering something to Hope from time to time making her giggle.

"Good morning, did you sleep well?" I asked Stefan

"Hmm.. once I got here, yes." He said leaning in a bit giving me a quick kiss on my cheek. I didn't want to confront him at that moment about what his problem was the day before, I liked his current mood and I didn't want to ruin it.

If I didn't have my supernatural hearing I probably would be able to hear all the moaning coming from next door; Elena's and Damon's room. I started to think that picking a room right next to them was a big mistake.

"What the... Seriously?" I ask

"Well it looks like tomorrow you two will be staying in my room any way" he says with a smirk on his face, capturing my hand again.

"Looks like it" I say sticking out my tongue out at him "I've been trying to teach Hope to say Caroline but it doesn't seem to be working" I turn my attention back to Hope "Hope, maybe you can say St-fan? Yhm?" I ask, but my hair in her hands seems to be a lot more interesting than whatever I was saying to her at that moment.

"Maybe not" he laughs, "this is nice but I have to get ready, Alaric asked me and Damon to meet him at Whitmore, get his suit and everything else ready for the wedding" he gets out of bed and stretches a bit making me admire his exposed, muscled chest. "And you young lady" he leans and talks to Hope "be good for Caroline and the girls today"

"I'll see you later" I tell him after he gives me one last peck on the lips.

...

I met Jo not long after, she came in with Bonnie and we ate breakfast together. She caught me up with everything that has been going on with her coven and how she met Alaric, and I could see why he wanted to marry her. She was perfect for him; about his age, knew about our secrets and evidently pregnant with his child.

I took Hope with me over to my mum's house; I wanted her to meet the newest member of the Mystic Falls gang. We haven't seen each other for a long time and I could see that she was really happy to see me. She didn't look quite like herself and acted a bit strange which got me really worried but she explained herself by blaming it on the amount of work she currently had at the police station. She promised to attend the wedding and see Stefan before we left again which made me really happy.

Hope was really fussy all of the day for some reason, first with her breakfast and after when we went out with the girls to finish the wedding last touch-ups. Jo, Bonnie, Hope and I got home late evening because of everything and what I saw when we got to the Salvatore's mansion made me extremely frustrated for some reason; Stefan and Elena drinking Damon's bourbon in front of the fire place, laughing at their old pictures together. Stefan didn't tell me when he was going to come back today, they looked _very cosy _together. I didn't spare them more than a moment before I went with Jo to the kitchen.

"They don't have anything" I told her looked through their fridge, we wanted to make something for dinner but obviously that wasn't going to happen "I can go and take something from Mystic grill for us, it won't take long but could you watch Hope for me?"

"That won't be needed" said Bonnie appearing in the kitchen "Damon and Enzo brought as takeaway from Mystic Grill" Enzo was here, god I haven't seen him in forever.

"Enzo?" I called after I walked into the living room

"Hello Gorgeous" he said with his usual smirk plastered on his face "and when were you going to tell me you were back in town?" he asked. I didn't even have time to look in the surprised direction of Stefan and Elena.

"Shut up you! I missed you" I said as I lounged to hug him

"And since when do you two stand to be in one room with each other" asked Elena brining me back to reality.

"Since Stefan left" I said looking at her trying to avoid Stefan's piercing eyes, "he was here, we became friends, no big deal" when I finally dared to look in Stefan's direction I couldn't tell whether he was disappointed in the fact that I became friends with the person that he hated or whether he looked guilty of the fact that he wasn't there for me during the hard times that we lost our friends.

"Let's eat, I'm starving" Damon decided to quickly change the topic and start eating.

Although the tension could be cut with a knife, everyone was trying to make small talk to avoid the awkward silence. Mostly we tried talking about Jo's and Alaric's wedding, but from time to time Damon would make some comment regarding Kai or other events that we missed while we were away or Enzo, who was sitting right next to me would ask me why I didn't contact him and be his flirty self. Throughout the whole meal I tried my best not to look in the direction of Stefan, which was really hard because he wasn't even hiding the fact that he was staring daggers at either me or Enzo.

"So Stefan... Tell us, how was it working in auto repair?" Enzo suddenly asks "What kind of cowered gives up on his own brother?"

"Enzo!" I shout at him, I know he meant the time when Bonnie and Damon were trapped in the prison world. Enzo, Alaric and I were the only once actually trying to find a way to bring them back. I didn't hold a grudge against Stefan but I also didn't want to talk about the whole situation again.

"You don't know what you're talking about" answered Stefan while he stood up and walked up to the fire place to pour himself another glass of bourbon

"Why don't you enlighten me then?" challenged Enzo, "Or maybe you should tell us since when are you Klaus's personal bitch?"

As Stefan started speeding dangerously close to Enzo, probably to start a fight, Damon stepped in to hold him back before the boys were going to throw punches.

"That's enough" Because Enzo was as ready to start a fight as Stefan was, it was Alaric's turn to step in and hold Enzo back to the other side of the room.

"You know, when you were gone I had a girl here crying over why you left, because she cares so much!" Shouting Enzo was obviously directing to the other side of the room were Damon was holding Stefan and where I didn't dare to look now. "And I try to figure out why, because I can't see what's worth caring about. Brothers don't give up!"

Even Damon wasn't strong enough to hold back Stefan enough, before we knew it and at least instead of Enzo's jaw, Stefan broke in half the nearby shelf and coffee table, then somehow got a hold of himself.

With all of the shouting going on in the room, no one even noticed the crying baby in the crib. Not all of the things that Enzo said were true, but some of it was. I know that Stefan changed, but Enzo bringing back the memories of months left alone without Stefan didn't help. With my barely steady legs I walked up to the crib and picked up Hope trying to calm her down.

"Enzo, I think you should go" said Damon looking with concern at the direction of me and Hope in my arms.

I looked around the room and all of my friend's faces once more before taking Hope upstairs to Stefan's room were her new cot was placed without another word. Once I brought her upstairs I tried every possible way I knew that always worked to calm her down, without good results. How could they fight in front of a baby? What's got into them?

"Do you need help?" asks Stefan as he leans near the door, I lay Hope on the bed hoping that this might help with her crying.

"Well I don't know Stefan. Are you going to start throwing tables around here to?" I ask sarcastically, folding by arms and facing him his way.

"Look.. I'm sorry for.."

"You almost had a fight in front of Hope, Stefan!" I shout at him, looking probably really disappointed right now. "What's got into you? Why were you so angry any way? It's just Enzo; you should have let it go"

"Yeah I was angry, I still am" suddenly I see some confidence as he steps closer to me, I don't see the regret in his eyes anymore "He just waltzes in here, hugging you, being all friendly, any you let him! You didn't tell me you were THAT close with that jerk Caroline!"

"What so you're angry at me as well because Enzo and I are friends now? I didn't tell you because I didn't think it was a big deal!"

"If it was just friendship that he had in mind"

"Are you jealous Stefan?" _was he? _"So what you're saying is that you're not okay with me being friends with someone you don't like but its okay with you and your ex-girlfriend to get drunk and go back to the old times"

"What are you talking about Caroline?" he says concerned all of a sudden, trying to capture my face in his strong palms, he was far too strong for me to push him away although I tried to. "You know I'm not in love with Elena anymore" I know that deep down, I already forgave him for all of today's events but still he had no right to be mad at me because of Enzo. "Caroline?" he asks for an answer from me, but I don't know what to say, so I turn in the direction of crying Hope and quickly pick her up. She's been crying for over 15 minutes.

"Stefan, something's wrong. She hasn't stopped crying."

"You think that she can get sick?" he asked putting his right hand gently on her forehead probably trying to determine if she had a high temperature.

"I don't know, Haley was a werewolf; she wasn't dead, she was still alive which means that a part of her might still get sick like any other human"

"I'll get Jo, she's a doctor, and she'll know what's wrong with her" he says before he gives Hope and me a kiss to the forehead.

"No wait, I'll come with you and Hope down stairs" I say following him down stairs.

After a short examination by Jo, she came to the conclusion that even though Hope already had some of her front teeth, the once at the back must be already coming out which must be really painful for her. She told us that it was very unusual at this age, but considering she wasn't a human it was probably fine. Everyone in the house was obviously really worried about the little baby, including Damon which was really surprising. And even though he was the first one to go to the store straight away after Jo said that a teething ring will help her, to get it for her, when he came back he dismissed all of the comments and said that he just didn't want to listen to her cry the whole night. Which was obviously a lie, because he stayed downstairs, by her cot the whole time she was crying, waiting for the ring to sooth her pain.

We decided to take Hope upstairs and lay her in our bed, after everyone else decided to get some rest. The teething ring didn't help straight away, and Hope did spend most of the night crying exhausting me and Stefan trying to calm her down, but finally she stopped. Even though I wished for nothing more than just to fall asleep next to her after the long day, I couldn't because I was worried that she might be in pain again.

Stefan and I spend most of the night, on both sides of her making sure she wasn't in so much pain through the night. But after the events that day, we haven't said a word to each other while we were laying there although I could see that he was looking at me from time to time with an unreadable expression.

"Caroline, we should talk" he says just as my eyelids were beginning to close. I was exhausted, in need of a shower and a good sleep and at that moment the last thing I wanted to do was talk, or rather fight with him.

"Stefan please... not now" I beg him trying to focus on the little hand that holds my index figure in a grip.

"Look I'm sorry, I drunk a little too much and forgot Hope was in the crib. He provoked me, but it's not an excuse. I promise it won't happen again" I could see the regret and how sincere he was when he said this to me, but I couldn't focus on him right now because I thought I hear Hope say something very faintly. "Caroline, say something please"

"Wait, listen" I say to him, and he suddenly turns his attention back to Hope.

"...Momma..." I thought I didn't hear her right the first time but after she repeated it a few more times and I saw Stefan's big eyes staring at her I was suddenly awake.

"Did she just..?" I ask looking at Stefan were he just nodes 'yes' obviously as surprised as I am "Hope I'm not your..." I start but somehow I can't finish the sentence "I'm Caroline" I repeat a few times trying to make her understand which doesn't seem to work because she still calls me _momma. _

I realise that it's getting harder to think about the fact that we will have to let go of her some day, _it's getting harder every dayit won't get any easier. _I tried my best not to break down in front of her, but before I knew, there were tears pouring out of my eyes anyway.

"Yes... momma, Hope" Stefan said as he gave her small kiss to the forehead, holding my hand which I was very grateful at that moment.

**Stefan's POV **

After a moment or two after Hope finally fell asleep, I watched her heading towards the bathroom door; it looked like she didn't want me to see her like this, her emotional self. But I didn't care, I caught her in my arms before she could reach the door and let her cry. We were going to face this together.

And after she calmed down she smiled the best she could at that moment, I couldn't take it anymore, and I had to feel her lips on mine, if she only knew what she was doing to me with a simple smile. I held her gaze as I leaned in and carefully graced my lips over hers. I saw that her eyes snapped shut immediately by the contact. She had the softest lips I have ever kissed. I continued to manoeuvre her bottom lip a few more seconds before I ended with softly gracing my tongue over her lip.

I then pulled back for a second and met her sparkling blue eyes, smiling back at me. "Forgive me, please"

Caroline then cupped my cheek and stroked her thumb over my cheekbone. She leaned back in and returned the favour by softly kissing my lips, her tongue now gracing my upper lip. Both of us were letting out moans in each other's mouths quietly trying not to wake Hope on the other side of the room.

I mumbled the same words to her again, against her lips and looked down at our now intertwined hands. I caressed her hand with my thumb, my face still inches from Caroline's.

Caroline smiled up at me "I already forgave you Stefan". She whispered and licked her lips.

I guess we were both light headed by the sensual kiss that we shared. Neither of us had ever felt anything like this before.

I lifted our hands and placed her hand over my chest "Can you feel what you're doing to me?" I whispered low, never letting her gaze go. She stared back at me for a moment while she obviously felt my heart thubbing wildly in my chest, before she crushed her lips onto mine again.

_**What do you think? I'm so sorry it took me so long to right but I had a slight problem with my laptop. Leave a comment below if you like it or if you have any suggestions on what you want to happen next in the story ;)**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Stefan's POV**

Alaric agreed to have the wedding in Whitmore, it wasn't only the place where they worked, had their house but also the place where they planned on starting a family. There was no point in booking reception somewhere in Mystic Falls. Before their special day, Damon being best man wanted to throw Alaric a bachelor party which Elena and Jo obviously didn't agree to, knowing Damon's vision of it. So we settled, or rather Damon settled on having the Salvatore mansion to the use of us, guys for the night and the mansion that Jo owned in Whitmore for the girls. Jeremy obviously couldn't be with us since he was away at some art school, but we did invite Matt, Tyler and unfortunately Enzo for Damon's request.

As the girls were probably preparing themselves for the next day; caring out all the possible spa treatments on the bride-to-be that she really didn't need in our opinion, we on the other hand had already drunk two bottles of bourbon and a few shots of vodka before it even started getting dark outside. Somehow through the night, Enzo's presence got less and less annoying which I blamed on the alcohol.

"So she's the one 'Ric?" asked Damon pouring us another set of shots to drink "cause I'm just saying, you've been dead, don't you want to live like a free man... with no regrets? You sure it's not about the bun in the oven thing?"

As a response that we all have been waiting for, Alaric pulled out of his back pocket his and Jo's wedding rings that he picked up earlier that day and said with a big grin on his face "Exactly, I've been dead" he looked around the room at all of us and added "Life is too short. I've been trying to plan it for the right moment which was supposed to be a few weeks ago, in the morning with breakfast in bed but she started puking up last night's dinner. You know Jo and this baby is something I never thought I would have." _Like Hope and Caroline_"And I love her."

It looked like I wasn't the only one that it gave a lot to think about but from how quiet it quickly got and the looks on everyone's faces I could see that we all understood where he was coming from.

"Okay then..." Matt interrupted the silence "Here's to you and Jo" he said putting his shot of vodka in the air and the rest of us followed.

"So.." started Tyler looking really serious all of a sudden "What's the deal with you and Caroline?" I had no idea had to answer this question. We were obviously more than just friends, but it was Tyler who was asking - her ex-boyfriend, what would she want me to say?

"Well my dear friend, sometimes friendship can be an excuse, a cover where there is something you don't want to admit. And trust me, I know something about it" answered Damon before I could get a word out.

"Alright look" how was I going to put it in a way that I wouldn't get a punch in the jaw from an ex-boyfriend "Something happened between Caroline and me"

"Finally" added Damon quietly as he was taking another sip of whiskey

"We're not technically together, and to be honest I don't know what we are.." and just as I was going to continue, Enzo beat me to it

"Pull the rip cord"

"What?" I don't think I understood him correctly

"Well she's not the one" and suddenly his annoying self flooded right back in "If she was, you wouldn't have any doubts about what she was to you"

"Yeah, but I didn't even..."

"You've been in love twice Stefan, does it feel like that?" did it? Was he right? The feelings I had for Caroline were strong, but was I mistaking them for something else? "Not all love is true love, Caroline wants the real deal and if you don't pull the rip cord, you will make things worse" that last part sounded like a threat, he probably thought that I was capable of hurting Caroline intentionally, which I wasn't.

After a couple of minutes of silence that I had enough of I backfired "I think you are wrong, I may not be able to explain what it is we have, what I feel for her, but it is something. And yeah maybe all love isn't true love in a way that I experienced it before, I think this could turn into something even better" which ultimately shut him up.

"Then stop wasting your time and tell her how you really feel about her brother" added Damon after I received approving looks from around the room.

...

The next day's morning was a blur for me and the rest of the guys. Not only was the hangover killing us but Alaric kept irritating as with his over excitement of the day ahead. We also noticed that the best man, the person that was supposed to make sure everything was ready for the wedding with Bonnie the maid of honour, disappeared somewhere in the morning. Even though Alaric kept sending him death threats via phone, he still only appeared as all of us well already standing at the altar waiting for our bridesmaids and the bride.

However, the anger was soon forgotten as Bonnie made her way down to the altar, followed by Elena, and finally the two most beautiful girls at the church in my opinion. Caroline was the only one that has a baby in her arms instead of lilies that Jo and Bonnie picked out for the rest of the bridesmaids. As my two ladies took their place at the altar behind Elena it was Jo's turn to walk down the aisle.

From what I heard Bonnie was the one to advise Jo regarding her wedding gown. The dress was cream coloured and made from chiffon, with a sweetheart neckline, which fit her body closely until the mid hip and then it widened gradually to the hem of the dress. Her hair was braided and pulled back into a bun with a short veil hanging from the bottom of it.

Although she too looked beautifully, and as she exchanged vows with Alaric we all got emotional, she wasn't the woman that I kept my eyes on the whole ceremony.

...

"Hi, I'd like your attention for a second, I'd like to propose a toast" after we had our meal with the rest of the guests, Damon interrupted our dessert with a glass of Champaign in his hand "to my knuckle head of a best friend and his beautiful bride" he added with a chuckle making everyone else laugh.

"Oh here we go" said Alaric turning in Jo's direction at the table giving her a kiss on her cheek.

"As most of you know Alaric's and Jo's relationship was.. ha.. was unexpected. But mostly because Jo is classy, attractive and Alaric is... not" he winked in Jo's direction making everyone laugh once again "But here's to Alaric and Jo, for proving to us that love is real and genuine and still attainable for the rest of us. Cheers you to!" he finished before the wedding hall irrupted with applause.

Unfortunately I wasn't lucky enough to sit beside Caroline or Hope, since she had to sit with the rest of the bridesmaids and Hope was in care of Caroline's mother but I did hope to get a chance to dance with her and have a few seconds just for the two of as so we could talk. After Alaric's and Jo's first dance together as a married couple, I didn't waste any time to get to Caroline to ask for my dance, but unfortunately for me, Enzo beat me to it.

I spend the whole time looking in their direction leaning against the bar drinking Champaign throughout their whole dance. I narrowed my eyes when I saw Enzo place a hand low on her waist, leaning to whisper something in Caroline's ear. Instead of putting him in his place like she so often did, she just threw her head back and laughed at whatever Enzo had said and laid her hand on his chest to steady herself. Though I did understand why he looked at her the way he did. She looked truly like an angle in her coral dress; with her back exposed and her braided hair put on her right holder.

She excused herself a few seconds before the song ended and headed towards the corridor, probably wanting to use the restroom. I didn't waste any time and followed her, I waited patiently for her to be the only woman felt in the woman's restroom and then I quietly locked the door behind myself. I waited around the corner making sure that she wasn't able to see me, and I patiently waited for the water to stop running from the tap as she was probably washing her hands.

**Carolines POV **

When I was finished, I didn't get a change to get to the door because someone pulled me up against the cold wall, with my left hand held in place by the person's right, above my head. You can only imagine how surprised I was to see Stefan, leaving me vulnerable for a second before it gave away to the confusion and annoyance that he must really got accustomed to by now. Although he could probably tell that I was happy to see him anyway.

"What the hell are you doing?" I hissed at him

He let out a homerless chuckle. "I was about to ask you the same question" he snarled back. "In what twisted universe is it okay for Enzo to flirt with you right before my eyes?"

"You gotta be kidding. Let go of me," I said, trying to wriggle my hand out of his grasp while simultaneously trying to shove him away with my free hand, but he didn't budge even a millimetre.

"Not until you explain to me why you let yourself be groped by another man?!" he took a breath

I regarded him for a long moment "What makes you think you have any right to judge what or who I'm doing"

"Because your mine Caroline!" he roared slamming his free hand into the door next to her head. His possessiveness annoyed me, but did he just suggest that we were _together?_

Both of his hands were firmly planted on either side of my head, more or less trapping me in my position but I didn't make a move to get away from Stefan.

Instead I said in a calm voice "Are you jealous of Enzo? Please..." Hearing me mention Enzo's name must have snapped something in his head all over again. In more long stride he ate up the distance between us and crashed his mouth down on mine, holding my head steady in his hands.

For a moment my whole body went still but then my hands were on his chest, I fisted the material of his shirt and drew him even closer answering his angry kisses. My hands found their way to the nape of Stefan's neck and I tugged hard on his hair. One of his hands moved from my face, over my shoulder, down my back until he cupped my behind. He brought down his second hand when I moaned in response. I nipped at his bottom lip, provoking a low groan from him. He backed me up against the door trapping my body with his. But even that wasn't enough. His hands crept lower, down to the hem of my dress pushing it up further. He seemed to need me closer, wanted to feel my body pressed against his. Stefan's hands found the back of my thighs and lifted me up with no effort.

He couldn't suppress the moan that escaped his mouth when I immediately wrapped my legs around his waist, my heels digging into his ass, while my hips moved sensuously against him. He pushed one of his hands between their bodies and sneaked its way under the material of my dress and found the flimsy fabric of my underwear. My hands weren't idle either. After one last hard yank on his hair, I moved down to tug his shirt out of his pants. Soon enough, my restless fingers found their way under his shirt, flitting over every inch of his stomach and chest. Stefan tore his lips away from mine and refocused his attention on my neck, nipping at my smooth skin with his teeth before soothing the pain with relentless strokes of his tongue.

"You're mine. No one else's" he mumbled against my skin as my mouth found his shoulder, I bit down through the fabric of his shirt in a vain attempt to stifle my loud moan.

"Yes I'm yours" One of my hands found the nape of his neck again, scratching over his scalp, while my other hand drifted lower to his stomach until I found the waistband of his pants.

"Mine" he growled over and over again in my ear, and just as I was about to slide my hand into his pants knocking on the door made both of them stop dead in their tracks.

Still breathing heavily, I let my head fall back against the door behind me and braced both of my hands flat on his chest, heat spreading from them like wildfire. He sat me back down on my shaky legs, pressed his into mine against the door for a full minute until he was sure I could stand on my own.

When both of our breathing had slowed down, Stefan finally turned his head to look at me with a small smile that I adored so much. It took him another long moment to eventually take a step back; he raked a hand through his short hair and tried to ignore the constant knocking.

"We'll finish this later" he promised giving me one last kiss on my heated cheek before he unlocked the door and made his way out surprised to see my mother.

"Stefan.. well I didn't expect you too..." I heard her say with amusement in her eyes.

"I was just trying to.. well you see" he tried to come up with an excuse as to why he was in the ladies restroom

"Mum?" I made my presence known and quickly stepped in

"Oh honey your here.. I was going to use the restroom first and then look for you Stefan but since your here I guess we could talk now"

"Yeah..." he said clearly his throat "Yes, of course"

"Honey?" my mum asked "Why don't you go to Hope, she's dancing with Alaric and Jo but you probably want to but her to sleep somewhere. Its late"

"Okay, I'll go" I smiled in response

As I was about to make my way there Stefan pulled me in so that he could whisper in my ear, his warm breath tickling my ear "He will never make you feel the way I just did, remember that. Also, if that son of a bitch touches you again.. I will kill him."

**I hope you enjoyed this chapter, please comment and give some feedback. Also suggest things that you want to see happen in the future chapters. **


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